SCOTUS Fair Credit Reporting Act Background Check Standing Case Remanded To Lower Court

Executive Summary: On May 16, 2016, in a 6-2 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court remanded the closely watched Spokeo Inc. v. Robins case back to the Ninth Circuit for further analysis. The issue is whether the plaintiff, Robins, has standing to sue Spokeo under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for injuries allegedly caused by Spokeo's dissemination of incorrect information about Robins. Standing requires the plaintiff to show (1) injury (2) that is fairly traceable to the defendant's conduct, and (3) that is likely to be redressed by a favorable judicial decision. The appeals court held that Robins had standing. The Supreme Court, however, vacated the appeals court's decision and remanded the case back to it to consider whether Robins' complaint sufficiently alleged that his claimed injuries were "concrete." The case is still alive. Employers had hoped that the Supreme Court's decision would prevent plaintiffs from establishing standing by alleging mere statutory